Writers of Pro Football Prospectus 2008

Extra Points

Lavonte David's Quietly Huge Year

You may remember a lot of talk from us last year about J.J. Watt's record of 56 Defeats in the 2012 regular season. "Defeats" are our stat that combine the following three types of plays:

1) Tackles for a loss
2) Turnovers, or pass deflections leading to interceptions by someone else
3) Tackles, assists, or PDs that prevent conversion on third or fourth down.

Watt's total of 56 last completely blew away the historical field. Our counts of Defeats go back to 1996 and the previous record had been 45 by Ray Lewis in 1999. Derrick Brooks in 1999 was the only other player to ever top 40...

... until this week.

Lavonte David of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had four Defeats against Buffalo this week, giving him 43 on the season. It would take three huge games, but he's within sight of Watt's record. More likely, he ends up with about 50 Defeats, the second highest total since 1996.

Cataloging David's 43 Defeats, we have:

7 sacks (6.0, technically, but since an assist is a Defeat, half-sacks are full Defeats)

5 interceptions

2 PDs on third downs

3 TFL after pass receptions

8 tackles to prevent third-down conversions on pass receptions

13 TFL on runs, including a safety

5 tackles to prevent third-down conversions on runs (one of which was also a TFL)

1 stuff of Mark Ingram on fourth-and-goal

Of course David's season isn't quite as amazing as Watt's. Most of the all-time leaders in Defeats are linebackers. Watt not only set the overall record, he destroyed the previous record for Defeats by a defensive lineman, which had been 37 by Detroit's Robert Porcher in 1997. But it's a pretty damn amazing season for a player who doesn't get a lot of press on a team that started 0-8. You may not have realized this, but Tampa Bay is sixth in defensive DVOA.

yay! for a nebraska defensive product (coach or player :) ) who isn't in the news for being the dirtiest player in the nfl, weekly unsportsmanlike conduct penalties, ranting like a crazy person at the media and fans, or getting fired for smoking crack in florida.

Well, didn't he start the year with a highlight reel late hit OB penalty that gave his opponents a win (well, a chance they capitalized on FTW). That's a lot bigger than any 3rd down defeat and bigger than all but his goal line defeat. Shouldn't that count against him?

Put another way, that play was touted as basically the "stupidest play of the year" for all of a week. I guess he redeemed himself, eh?

No, he was so good last year that the momentary brain fart was easy to forget, if you know football that is. Unless you think "momentum" and that somehow, had Lavonte not pushed Geno, the bucs would not have lost the next 7 games.

T.Davis 2 does not shock me. Him and Kuechly jump off the screen when watching the Panthers, which his just flat out crazy when you consider what T.Davis had to go through.

Side question to SF fans, I was incredibly disappointed watching Patrick Willis this week - On a throw to I'm not sure who (Luke Wilson?), he nearly looked slow. I was not sure if it was the same LB that I saw recovering a fumble (vs the Seahawks?) and outrunning every player on the field, RB/WR included, for a return TD in his rookie or 2nd year. Is there anything wrong with him?

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